Fintech Uses Machine Learning for Smarter Debt Collection

A San Francisco-based startup that uses algorithmic machine learning to study consumer behavior is trying to flip a decades-old model that banks and other creditors use for collecting debts.  Machine learning can help banks and other financial services companies preserve their relationships with customers in delinquency rather than sending them to collections and saying goodbye, Ohad Samet, CEO of TrueAccord Corp., said in an interview with Bloomberg Law.

$8B In Bad Credit Card Debt Write-Offs Worry US Banks

With the rate of delinquent credit card holders slowly rising, some banks are scaling back on opening new accounts. Last year, it was reported that credit card debt had surpassed the $1 trillion mark in the U.S., becoming the third consumer lending category that has surpassed $1 trillion in debt in the last few years. Auto loans was the first category first to reach that mark, while student loan debt was second.

More than 1-in-5 consumers had telecommunications-related collections on their consumer report in the past 5 years

This is part of a series of quarterly reports of consumer credit trends produced by the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection using a longitudinal, nationally representative sample of approximately five million de-identified credit records maintained by one of the three nationwide credit reporting companies. This fourth report explores the reporting of telecommunications debts in consumer credit records.

News Media, Tech Firms Clash Over How the FTC Should Approach Regulation

When the FTC announced its plan to host hearings on Competition and Consumer Protection in the 21st Century earlier this year, think tanks and tech firms rushed to meet the August 20 deadline to comment on how they think the FTC should approach various competition and consumer issues, like antitrust regulation, algorithmic decision-making tools, privacy, Big Data, artificial intelligence (AI), predictive analytics, communication technology firms, and social media.

Attorney General Frosh Joins New Brief in Net Neutrality Lawsuit Brief Urges DC Circuit to Vacate and Reverse FCC’s Illegal Rollback of Net Neutrality

BALTIMORE, MD (August 21, 2018) – Maryland Attorney General Brian E. Frosh today joined a new brief in the lawsuit to block the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) illegal rollback of net neutrality, urging the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit to vacate and reverse the FCC’s order. Attorney General Frosh is part of a coalition of 23 Attorneys General that filed suit earlier this year.

TEC Services Group, Inc. Announces Scholarship Recipients

TEC Services Group, Inc. announced today the recipient of the 2018 Scholarship Program. TEC offers the Scholarship Program each year to employees of the ARM industry and their dependents attending a four-year accredited college or university. Each applicant was required to meet academic, attendance and citizenship standard requirements for their State. In addition, applicants were required to submit an essay describing what leadership means to them and to provide a real-world example of leadership. TEC would like to thank all who participated in the program.

Here’s how much debt Americans have at every age

Credit cards, student loans, mortgages, car loans, personal loans: Most Americans have a combination of these sources of debt. And despite their best intentions, Americans are digging themselves deeper into a hole each year.  The average American now has about $38,000 in personal debt, excluding home mortgages. That's up $1,000 from a year ago, according to Northwestern Mutual's 2018 Planning & Progress Study, which also reports that "fewer people said they carry 'no debt' this year compared to 2017 (23 percent vs. 27 percent)."

Comfortably numb: Americans are less worried about online security

Americans are actually less concerned about online security and privacy risks than they were in 2015, according to new Census Bureau data released today by the technology policy arm of the Commerce Department. Why it matters: These findings are surprising in light of the constant news of security breaches and privacy scandals, and suggest that consumers are becoming numb to the growing threats to their personal data. By the numbers: The proportion of online households reporting privacy and security concerns fell from 84% in 2015 to 73% in the fall of 2017, per the data released today.

Big banks are getting ready for an uncertain future

For people of my generation, smartphone banking comes naturally. Visiting the bank, standing in long lines, meeting your relationship manager is not something I have ever done in my 33 years of existence. And why should I when I can transfer money with the touch of my finger and make investments through an app.  So, when my parents, who live in India, tell me that they have to go to the bank — a place that has become their second home over the years — to make an investment, it baffles me.

The bright future of machine learning

A decade ago, just three of the 2,500 students enrolled in leadership and organizational change professor Brian Uzzi’s classes knew about machine learning. Five years ago, three became 10%, and now, this topic is “the number one thing all students want to learn about,” Uzzi says. Machine learning is definitely a hot topic these days, and both Uzzi and management and organizations professor Adam Pah (left), who together have been studying machine learning for more than two decades, have some ideas about its benefits, pitfalls and vast potential.

Student Loans Are Starting to Bite the Economy

Student loans are now the second-largest category of household debt in America, topping $1.4 trillion and trailing only mortgages at $9 trillion. And while Korn Ferry puts the average starting salary for a 2018 college graduate at $50,390, up 2.8 percent from 2017, the just-released July Consumer Price Index report shows the inflation rate rose 2.9 percent over the last 12 months. Does the phrase “treading water” come to mind?

Americans take on more debt

More than half of Americans said "reducing debt" was their top financial priority for 2018; however, average personal debt increased $1,000 from last year to $38,000. The survey from Northwestern Mutual also revealed that credit card debt is the main source of debt for 25 percent of respondents – tied with mortgages.

WARNO: New security clearance guidelines make it more important than ever for servicemembers to monitor their credit

The federal government recently implemented new security clearance guidelines that make it more important than ever for servicemembers to stay on top of their bills and monitor their credit histories.

The Week Ahead: Focus on BCFP Director Nom

On Thursday, the Senate Banking Committee will convene at 10 a.m. ET to vote on the nomination of Kathy Kraninger as the new director of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (BCFP). The committee's vote will decide whether Kraninger's nomination will move to the Senate for a vote to confirm her as the Director of the Bureau. Kraninger, who is currently an Associate Director at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) was nominated by President Trump in June.

Big Data, Business Analytics Revenue to hit $260 Billion in 2022

SAN FRANCISCO: Worldwide revenues for Big Data and Business Analytics (BDA) solutions will reach $260 billion in 2022 with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.9 per cent over the 2017-2022 period, according to a new forecast from International Data Corporation (IDC).   BDA revenues are expected to total $166 billion this year, an increase of 11.7 per cent over last year, showed the updated "Worldwide Semiannual Big Data and Analytics Spending Guide" from IDC on Wednesday.

The state of cybersecurity at small organizations

ESG recently completed a research survey of 400 cybersecurity and IT professionals working at small organizations (i.e. 50 to 499 employees) in North America. As you can imagine, these firms tend to have a small staff responsible for cybersecurity and IT, reporting to business management rather than CIOs or CISOs. (Note: I am an employee of ESG.)  How are these firms doing with cybersecurity? Not so good. 

FBI warns of potential ATM bank heist that could steal millions globally

The FBI has warned banks that ATMs will likely face a global attack by criminals in the “coming days.” The FBI was tipped off that these cybercriminals would hack payment card processors or banks and use ATMs all over the world to withdraw millions of dollars over the course of a few hours, as reported by cybersecurity blog Krebs on Security.  Krebs on Security says that the FBI shared a confidential alert with banks last Friday, stating, “The FBI has obtained unspecified reporting indicating cyber criminals are planning to conduct a global Automated Teller Machine (ATM) cash-out scheme in the coming days.

Soaring bankruptcy rates signal a ‘coming storm of broke elderly,’ study finds

Older Americans are filing for bankruptcy at more than double the rate of just 25 years ago, a sign of a "coming storm of broke elderly," a new study finds. The rate of people 65 and over filing for bankruptcy grew nearly 204 percent from 1991 to 2016, a study published by the Social Science Research Network found, and the percentage of seniors among all U.S. bankruptcy filers increased by nearly five times over the same period.

Banks Are Eyeing $1.5 Trillion in Credit Card Secrets

Few people can get inside your head—or at least the part of your brain that makes spending decisions—quite like Scott Grimes and Lynne Laube. The co-founders of Cardlytics Inc. deal in some of the most valuable and revealing personal data on the planet: how people use their debit and credit cards. They’re quietly helping some of the largest banks in the U.S. to mine what’s known in the trade as purchase data and use it to encourage customers to buy more things with their plastic.

Credit Card Debt Surges 7% in Q2 2018, Experian Reports

U.S. credit card balances grew 6.6 percent in the second quarter of 2018, compared to the same period in 2017, according to new Experian data. The total balances for credit cards increased to $782 billion in the second quarter, up from $734 billion in Q2 2017. South Dakota, North Carolina and Kentucky saw the greatest year-over-year growth in the first quarter in the number of new credit card accounts. Every state saw the number of new credit card account grow in the second quarter of 2018, compared to last year.

CBCInnovis® Announces Credit Integration with Laser Credit Access®

CBCInnovis, a leading provider of mortgage credit and data verification services to the mortgage lending industry, today announced an integration of its services with LASER Accuracy LLC, a Salesforce AppExchange Partner, and developer of the Salesforce App LASER Credit Access. The agreement allows CBCInnovis customers to automatically access credit report data within their Salesforce environment.

PREFERRED COLLECTION AND MANAGEMENT SERVICES, INC. INITIATES PARTNERSHIP OF TWO TECH VENDORS, REPAY AND TCN, INC.

ATLANTA, Ga., ST. GEORGE, Utah and TAMPA, Fla., August 16, 2018 /PRNewswire/ — When it comes to creating efficiencies and elevating the customer experience, Preferred Collection and Management Services, Inc. (Tampa) understands the recipe for success. Preferred CMS initiated a dynamic partnership between its payment processing provider, REPAY Realtime Electronic Payments (Atlanta), and its contact center technology provider, TCN (St. George), that promises to deliver an enjoyable and frictionless payment experience for Preferred CMS customers.

States Take Action on Bitcoin Online Lending

State regulators are keeping a close eye on cryptocurrency and digital lending activities, with a cease and desist order involving bitcoin and a new law targeting online lenders.  The moves come in the wake of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s (OCC) announcement that it will begin accepting applications for special purpose national bank charters geared toward fintech companies, a move that likely will encroach upon state regulation and oversight of fintech companies.

How blockchain’s structure encourages accountability

PayThink: Blockchain, the technology behind cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, is our best chance of promoting collaboration and the fair use of each other’s services. It provides a solution for aligning all parties’ interests.
In blockchain, a dispersed network of stakeholders takes over the previous owners of such services. These providers and users not only own but maintain the services that are powered by the blockchain. They also get to share the profits that are produced by the services.

Heres why you credit score may suddenly be on the rise

New York Fed: 11-point increase in average credit score
Our nation’s consumers have been witnessing a steady stream of changes over the past year that have bumped their scores up little by little, in many cases.  We told you how Equifax, Experian and TransUnion removed most tax liens and civil judgments from consumer credit files in July 2017. Then in April of this year, the three main credit bureaus took it a step further and decided to remove all tax liens.

$489,136.02 Payday Loans

Bayview Solutions LLC

(866) 546-9088

$1,268,978.75 Checks

Bayview Solutions LLC

(866) 546-9088

$79,898,988.05 Credit Cards

Bayview Solutions LLC

(866) 546-9088

$ 69,322,436.15 Credit Cards

Bayview Solutions LLC

(866) 546-9088

$746,875.79 Credit Cards

Bayview Solutions LLC

(866) 546-9088

$2,755,033.74 Payday Loans

Bayview Solutions LLC

(866) 546-9088

$788,475.26 Payday Loans

Bayview Solutions LLC

(866) 546-9088

$122,072,646.35 Credit Cards

Bayview Solutions LLC

(866) 546-9088

$1,902,144.87 Payday Loans

Bayview Solutions LLC

(866) 546-9088

$4,594,113.51 Consumer Loans

Bayview Solutions LLC

(866) 546-9088

Debt Connection Symposium & Expo 2018

Produced by Resource Management Services, Inc.

Auto Finance Summit 2018

Auto Finance News

LendIt Fintech Europe 2018

LendIt Conference LLC.

Collection & Recovery Solutions 2019

Resource Management Services, Inc.